Alien Trek
by Casia Vasquez
Summary: In space, no one can hear you explore the final frontier. [A short story containing much blood and death.]
1. The Planet

" _Captain's log: Stardate 45570.4. We have arrived near an uncharted planet outside of the Federation in the hopes of repairing our warp drive engines. Meanwhile, an Away Team including Commander Riker, Commander Data, and Lieutenant Worf has been sent to investigate the planet."_

The three officers arrived on the rugged black surface. They wore ultra-protective spacesuits; the planet's atmosphere was made of the dangerous noble gas radon, and it was exceedingly warm. In the distance, a volcano spewed orange lava into the dark sky. The terrain was much like the Badlands area on Earth, but without visible vegetation.

Data took out his scanner and swept it over the area. He read, "Beside radon, the atmosphere contains carbon dioxide and hydrogen. The ground and igneous rocks we see are made of bismuth sulfide, silica, and polonium."

"Any signs of life?" Riker inquired.

"No, sir."

The faraway pink sun penetrated through the gray clouds of sulfur and carbon dioxide, casting an otherworldly glow on the three explorers, who had to scale sides of black-and-gray-layered hills and walk around many same-colored rocks of all sorts of sizes. There were also beautiful rainbow bismuth formations, block-like and towering. Riker had an inkling to touch one, and it came tumbling down between him and his companions.

"Commander, bismuth is quite fragile at room temperature and only gets worse with heat," Data stated.

"Thank you," Riker flatly replied.

A little ways down the same path, they encountered a short valley and a pink stream about half a meter wide. Data scanned it and declared, "It is mostly composed of water and receives its coloring from bismuth subsalicylate."

Meanwhile, Riker poked at a waist-high plant growing next to the river. Its long, red stem twisted around in loops and was dotted with yellow leaves. Upon being touched, the plant tilted away from Riker as if offended. There were more of them growing around the river, some with cyan-hued berries hanging off the ends. These were the first signs of life that the Away Team had seen.

"What do you make of these?" he asked Data.

"They are not showing up in any records, and must be native only to this planet."

"Do you suppose anything eats them?" Worf asked, hand rising to his hip where his phaser was stored. He was always ready for some action, as typical Klingons are.

"Possibly." Data gave a quick nod. He then managed to step over the river and continue the journey.

They strolled through more stunning formations, this time of polonium-laced rocks. The silvery metal of the polonium highly contrasted with the black material, and the wavy streaks of both elements made a mesmerizing pattern. One spiked rock swirled about from the top to the bottom and resembled a fat candy stick. There was one side of a hill that seemed to be cut in half, revealing a mirror-like sheet of polonium. Riker glanced at it, gazing at the rose-tinted reflection of his companions. He thought he saw something move, so he quickly turned in the other direction to see if it was there, but there were only hills and rocks.

Perhaps it was just his sense of unease. Despite the dangerous gases and gray sky, the planet was beautiful. Riker thought about terraforming the atmosphere to make the place habitable and mining important minerals. He was even entertaining the thought of being a colonist with a wife and having children. His reverie ended when they finished climbing a hill and stopped under a natural arch.

"Commander," Data said, "do you see that opening in the side of that outcropping over there?" He pointed to it.

Riker squinted into the distance. "Yes."

"Do you believe we should explore that area?"

He took a moment to consider the implications. "Sure."

They all pulled out their phasers and carefully made their way over the next hills and promontories. They slowed when drawing near to the meter-wide opening of the cave and turned on the flashlights on the heads of their suits. They had to crawl in. Worf entered first, being the most eager for whatever might come.

The floor slowly sloped downward for a while and then opened up into a wider area as big and tall as the bridge on the Enterprise. Glowing green moss between ridges on the wet ceiling provided light for them to see what was on the walls: black, curling, tube-like structures. The room was moist and hotter than the outside. "Data, how hot is it in here?" Riker asked after standing up and stretching himself out.

"Forty degrees Celsius."

Worf swept his periphery around, keeping his phaser turned in the same direction as his face, alert for any hostile creature.

They explored farther into the cave after spotting a bigger tunnel in the upper left hand corner. It was also covered with the same mysterious tubing and ridges. The tunnel was short and led to a circular room which contained leathery ovoid objects and another tunnel leading somewhere else.

"These are someone's eggs," Riker proclaimed, taking a step back.

Worf shined a light into one of them, edging nearer to it with Data. "I see movement."

The thing inside shuddered and slid around. So did Riker. The egg suddenly opened up with a strange noise, four flaps folding back. The tall Klingon craned his neck to see what was inside. It was something light beige. It moved around and faced upward. Then it sprung, eight long fingers extended menacingly for Worf's face.

Data reacted like lightning and immobilized the creature with the phaser, first whacking it from its trajectory and then stunning it. Spooked, Worf jumped backwards into Riker, who yelped. They scrambled up the tunnel and into the first chamber, panting. Data soon followed, carrying the thing by its tail. "Fascinating," he said unaffectedly.

"Put that back!" Riker cried, looking around guiltily. "I don't want to be around when the mother finds us here."

"I agree," Worf said.

"To be fair," Data started, "I do not know how long it will remain unconscious. It could wake up after we leave the cave and follow us out; it moves very quickly. I do have exceptional strength to prevent it from escaping. It is better to take it on the ship with us for safety reasons."

Riker and Worf exchanged concerned glances. Riker thought it was a little odd for Data to ignore standard procedure and their feelings about the organism, but he said, "Fine." They quickly crawled out of the cave and took a last gaze at the planet. Riker promptly hit his communication button. "Away Team to Transporter Room: we have found an unidentified life form. Please beam us into a decontamination room."

"Acknowledged, Commander," was O'Brien's reply.

They were immediately transported to the requested room, which was a spotless white. Data walked over to the wall and lowered the thing into a drawer where it would be decontaminated and then sent to an observation room. The wash cycle began, first spraying them with water and then chemicals from all angles, and a last rinse of water. After the room drained, they took the suits off and put them in a shoot that led to an incinerator.

The computer did a final scan of them. "No harmful substances are detected. You can now leave the room." The door slid open.

They walked out and headed to the elevator, keen on giving Captain Picard their report.


	2. The Miracle of Life

Captain Picard peered over Wesley's shoulder to see the youth playing Tetris on his console.

"Ensign Crusher, what are you doing?"

"Killing my boredom, sir."

Picard audibly inhaled. Deanna smiled from her assigned seat. Before Picard could say anything more, Riker strutted onto the Bridge with his two companions. "Captain, we have a tentative situation."

"What is it, Number One?"

"Lieutenant Worf was attacked by an unknown species resembling a spiderlike creature, Commander Data immobilized it, and we currently have it in an observation room, per his advice."

Picard looked to Data, raising his eyebrows. "Your explanation?"

Data told Picard the same things he told Riker on the unnamed planet.

"Very well," Picard stated neutrally. "Let me see this creature."

* * *

The observation room that held the life form was located in the science department and had ample space for it to run around in if it so desired, but it was still unconscious. A couple of researchers stood looking through the glass at the thing, jotting notes on their electronic clipboards. They got out of the captain's way when he entered.

Picard looked at the organism with evident disgust. "You say it went for Lieutenant Worf's face?"

"Yes, Captain," Riker replied.

"Hm." He walked to the end of the glass to look at it from a different angle. Its long, grotesque fingers and tail were sprawled on the floor. "It would be nice to study it, but we need to beam it back down before it causes trouble," he gravely stated, brows close to knitting. He left as soon as he said this, avoiding the gazes of Riker and Data, who had accompanied him.

Deanna entered as he was leaving. "He's quite disturbed by it." She was always Commander Obvious.

"I've never seen the captain quite like that," Riker noted as he stared at the creature. "It gives me the creeps, both his reaction and the organism."

"I am sorry to have given you all such discomfort," Data apologized, trying to find true remorse amongst all his machinery.

"Do you have any theories about it?" Deanna asked him.

"I do," he replied. "We did not see any other types of organisms beside a fruit-bearing plant. This could be because the life form had already hunted down all other species. It would have happened quite a while ago, as there were no bones or carcasses. I believe it is a carnivore."

"Wouldn't there also be more types of plants, as well?" Riker questioned.

"Perhaps floral evolution has not taken place yet."

"Then, how could these other life forms come to be?"

"With the aforementioned evidence, I conclude that the organism is not native to the planet."

They all looked at each other. Before they could suggest a plot by the Romulans, Cardassians, or the Ferengi, the organism's fingers twitched upward. Both humans leaped back. Data, being an android, wasn't startled. The life form twitched again, with more movement that time. The tail flopped, too. Then it flipped around on its eight extremities, identified the humans, and pounced at the window, using its raw power and acid to help it get through. It was too quick, and Deanna's scream was cut short as it attached to her face and wrapped its tail around her neck. Glass shards fell around the three crew members.

Riker yelled and furiously grabbed at the thing with his hands, unable to pull it off. Data tried, as well, but the organism was on the verge of choking Deanna. Data pulled out his phaser.

"No," Riker said, holding Deanna's limp hands and feeling for a pulse. "She's already unconscious. We don't even know what it'll do if we stun it on her face."

Data tapped his communicator. "Transporter Room, Commander Troi needs to be beamed to Sickbay immediately."

"Acknowledged!" O'Brien hollered. Deanna's body disappeared in a flash.

Riker and Data sprinted up several decks to Sickbay, where Dr. Crusher was already running scans and diagnostics.

"How is she?" Riker impatiently questioned.

"She's alive," Dr. Crusher said in her calming, motherly voice, not looking up at them because she was still waving her handheld scanner over Deanna's body while the sick bed showed an x-ray of her upper half. "The organism appears to be feeding her oxygen through a tube."

"What does it want?"

"I don't know. It hasn't moved."

Data wondered what he could or should say. Riker was certainly upset about his on-and-off girlfriend being in mortal peril. Saying another apology would most likely make him angrier.

"Commander…" Data said carefully.

"Go report to the captain," the taller man responded gruffly, clutching Deanna's hand. He was trying not to be angry at Data, who had done what he had thought was right with the organism. Hindsight was always perfect, though, and Riker had to remember that. They had been in tougher situations before and pulled through as a team.

The android departed in silence, pondering the organism's existence as well as his own. Data searched his memory banks several times for anything remotely close to this predicament. There was nothing to go off of. He had hundreds of thousands of reports, encyclopedias, and other references in his mind, but nothing of help.

He met Geordi on the way to the Bridge.

"How's it going, Data?"

"Commander Troi is in Sickbay with an organism on her face."

"Is she doing okay?"

"She's unconscious and the organism is providing oxygen for her to breathe, but Doctor Crusher is obtaining more information as we speak."

"That seems odd."

They reached the Bridge, stepping out of the elevator. The Bridge crew all turned their heads to look at the party of two, then quickly went back to work. Captain Picard was in his Ready Room, so Geordi and Data went in together. The captain looked up from his handheld screen and focused on them. Data went first and relayed the information to the captain as it had happened to Deanna. Data felt no guilt, but he wanted to feel guilt; he wanted to be human. No success. He wondered if his friends would blame him for the situation.

Picard gave Data a weird look because he was trying to cover up his troubled expression and suspicion. "I'm giving Commander Riker the rest of the day off, as he is too concerned about Commander Troi to do his duties. As for you, Commander Data…" He paused for a longer time than he usually would. "Please remain in your quarters."

Data quirked his mouth as he was programmed to do when something didn't meet his expectations. He wasn't going to argue even though he was a bit indignant, having protocol not to argue unless necessary. The situation was very tense for all of them. "Yes, sir."

After he left, Geordi told Picard that the warp engines were shipshape and ready to go.

"Thank you, Commander La Forge," Picard said, then hesitated. "Wait here for a moment, please." He picked up his handheld device again and began tapping and typing.

"What is it, Captain?" Geordi asked.

"A déjà vu feeling, or maybe a distant memory."

Geordi awkwardly stood there while Picard searched for whatever he needed. He didn't know how long he would have to stand there, and thought about making polite conversation as he became bored and unfocused. When Picard had found it about a dozen minutes later, he frowned and said, "Please collect Lieutenant Worf for a brief meeting in the Observation Lounge."

"Yes, sir," Geordi responded and did as he was told.

Picard tapped his communicator. "Doctor Crusher, can you pull yourself away for a minute or two and bring Commander Riker?"

"How important is it?" she asked. Her medical team had just tried to cut the creature off, but it had bled acid that only partially ate through the floor because she had summoned a shield in the nick of time.

"Very important. It concerns not only Deanna, but all of us."

* * *

In the Observation Lounge, Picard stared out into the abyss of space, hands folded behind his back. "As you all can see, Commander Data and Commander Troi are not present."

Dr. Crusher, Riker, Worf, and Geordi carefully breathed in.

Picard swallowed and began his lecture. "In my youth, I read a book. That book was _Game Over, Man_ by Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden. It was about her adoptive mother, Ellen Ripley, who was aboard a cargo ship in the year 2122. To keep it brief, the crew found what we found—a Facehugger—and it attached to one of the men, but they couldn't remove it because its blood was pure acid, as Doctor Crusher recently found out. Several hours later, the Facehugger died, and a new organism burst from the man's chest and escaped into the ventilation system. At first, it was small, but it grew at an exponential rate and killed off the rest of the crew, one by one, until Ripley was the only one left. She eventually killed it after destroying the entire ship and blowing it into space."

As Picard spoke, he looked at each and every one of his own crew, knowing the feeling of not wanting to lose them. "In that time, they discovered that one of the men was actually a dysfunctional android who was instructed by the Company to bring back the life form, even at expense of the crew. After fifty-seven years, a salvage team found Ripley in stasis in her escape pod. She was interrogated by the Company, Weyland-Yutani, but they did not believe her story about the alien. Meanwhile, they had a terraforming operation occurring on the same planet that Ripley had identified, and things went sour. The Company decided to send in the Marines and asked Ripley to go along as a consultant. Newt, only a little girl at the time, was the only surviving colonist; the others became hosts for the aliens. Only one Marine out of several dozen survived, too. Even their android, who helped them escape, had wounds."

He picked up a glass of water sitting on the long table and drank heavily. "Those four survivors returned to Earth after the planet's environmental controls exploded and wiped all evidence away. There was an inquest made by Weyland-Yutani and the larger government of the time, but nothing came of it. However, they lived through the horror that we might be facing soon if nothing is done." Picard stared at the light glistening off of the table in the hope that someone might ask a question and relieve the thick cloud of doom hanging in the air.

They were silent until Dr. Crusher politely queried, "Does the alien have a name?"

Picard sucked in the air more than breathed. "Yes."

The crew looked at him expectantly. Picard took the cue. "Xenomorph."

The word echoed around in their minds as its own distress signal.

"Captain," Geordi said slowly, "isn't this…a fiction book?"

"I just looked up its history while you were patiently waiting. It originally tried to debut as a biography about Ripley's life, but the Company sued Newt for libel and it was downgraded to science fiction. This whole event brought it back to my mind." He turned to the window, gazing into the abyss of the final frontier. "The story is true." Although, Picard absolutely did _not_ want it to be true. The Facehugger proved that Weyland-Yutani had tried to cover it all up, and that the crew of the Enterprise was in danger.

"So," Worf said, thinking back to the planet, "You are thinking that Data could have the same desire to capture these Xenomorphs as the android did."

"The _first_ android," Picard corrected. "The second one was a better model, however—"

Riker slammed his hands on the table and stood. He raised his voice as he said, "Despite Data's motivations, the—the— _Xenomorph_ will kill Deanna if we don't operate now!"

Dr. Crusher stood up and hurried out of the Observation Lounge without being dismissed. Riker followed.

Picard had no desire to see anything malignant and trusted Beverly Crusher's abilities. "Let us return to the Bridge," he said to Worf and Geordi, desiring to go back to his regular duties. It had only been two hours since Deanna had become a host, and that probably wasn't enough time for the alien to be fully developed. Not even Newt and Ripley had been sure how long the gestation took.

Meanwhile, Deanna was being prepped for operation. She was fed intravenous drugs and liquids, her uniform unzipped all the way open, revealing an alabaster chest. Dr. Crusher and her team wore surgical outfits and masks.

Riker, leaning against the wall where he wouldn't be in the way of the operation, had beads of sweat forming on his head.

"She'll be fine," Dr. Crusher assured him, though a glance at the monitor showed movement between Deanna's lungs. "Scalpel," she ordered.

Riker didn't watch the ensuing mess that the surgeons made, but he did see the Facehugger fall from Deanna's face and crumple on the floor. He whipped his head to the center of action when he suddenly heard an abnormal crack.

"Oh no," Dr. Crusher whispered involuntarily, stepping away from Deanna, whose ribs began moving in an upward position. Beverly wasn't trained mentally nor physically to deal with this. "It's coming!" She panicked. "Get back! GET BACK!"

The ribs fell and rose up again several times, crackling. Riker couldn't tear his petrified blue eyes away.

The bones finally broke, blood erupting onto the nearest bystanders, including Riker. The chestburster popped out and triumphantly squealed. It turned and looked with its bloody, eyeless face at Riker, who ripped off his mask, doubled over, and vomited. The chestburster growled and slithered from the operating table, burrowing its way into a nearby vent on the floor. How did it know where to go?

Dr. Crusher mumbled, "Computer, put us on blue alert," and fainted while the crew scrambled in mayhem.

The computer, not hearing this, said, "Please repeat the command."

Riker spat on the floor and wailed, "Go to blue alert immediately!"


	3. Into the Vents

Picard's grip tightened on his chair after seeing the blue alert strike the walls. "Worf, send a security team to Sickbay," he commanded. He didn't need to be told what had happened. His captain's intuition told him everything he needed to know.

Wesley swiveled around in his chair, worried. "Captain?"

Picard stood up. "Your mother is fine, Ensign. Do your duty."

"It's not just her…" he responded, nodding at Deanna's empty chair.

"Commander Troi is dead." The captain said the words in a hollow way. Picard had to push away his feelings about the situation. There were hundreds of other lives at stake.

Wesley's face fell and he returned to his work.

"Computer, I need to make a ship-wide announcement," Picard stated to the ceiling. A beep let him know that it was ready for him to speak. "Attention, occupants of the Enterprise. This is your captain speaking. I request that you all stay in your quarters until further notice. We have a life form loose aboard the ship. If you see it or it comes into your quarters, calmly alert us and refrain from puncturing its skin. Thank you."

The Bridge felt empty without Riker, Deanna, and Data. Picard thought about his Number One and wondered if Riker would be able to handle any responsibility at this point. The captain assumed that Riker had witnessed the birth and was undergoing shock. He concluded that they probably could kill the Xenomorph without him.

"Worf, are we able to pinpoint the alien's location?"

"No, sir."

Picard drew in an even breath. "Send the rest of the security personnel, including the off-duty officers and yourself, to Engineering."

"Yes, sir."

"And set phasers to stun. Otherwise, the Xenomorph will bleed acid." Picard wasn't sure what it would do if the setting was on kill, but they knew that the Facehugger hadn't bled when it was stunned. He tapped his communicator. "Commander Data, you're needed on the Bridge."

"Acknowledged." Data was in his room petting his orange cat, Spot, when this occurred. He was out of the loop of communication and wondered what could have happened in Sickbay so that a blue alert was needed.

While Data was on route, Picard reached out to Geordi. "Commander La Forge, please seal off the vents into sections as small as possible."

"You've got it, sir," he replied in a tight voice, thinking of Deanna. He didn't ask. The answer could wait, whether it was verbal or not.

Half a minute later, Data had barely stepped out of the elevator when Picard questioned, "Have you read the book _Game Over, Man_?"

Data searched his memory banks for a quick second. "No, sir."

Picard walked up the incline and gestured for Data to take a seat at an unoccupied console. He pulled up the book onscreen. "Quickly read it."

It took less than a minute for the book of 500 pages to be shelved into Data's mind. He turned around to face Picard and raised his eyebrows in question. "Sir, am I correct in assuming that the organism from this text is the same one we have onboard?"

"Affirmative."

Data assumed that they had already operated on Deanna and that she was alive. "And you have a suspicion that I have ulterior motives regarding the Xenomorph?"

"Well, I did at first, Data, but my better judgment kicked in." Picard felt a bit guilty for ever mistrusting his second in command, even for the few brief minutes while he was trying to sort everything out. "We had a meeting to discuss the situation, and I thought it better that Riker was separated from you."

"That's a good judgment call, Captain. What are your orders?"

Although Picard was a bit fearful, he was going to be prepared for the worst. He wasn't going to let the Enterprise go down without a fight. He had confidence that they would succeed, as they had information and technology that the _Nostromo_ and _Sulaco_ did not.

"Go down to Engineering and help them rig up some flamethrower units."

* * *

Meanwhile, Riker stared at himself in his own mirror, his eyes unfocused. A nurse dampened a towel and dabbed at his face with it, then left him alone.

The event played in Riker's head over and over. He wanted it to stop. After some silence, his legs gave way, and he fell to the floor, weeping. His brain dredged up all the wonderful memories of Deanna in chronological order. When they first met. Her smile, laugh, dark hair, black eyes, porcelain skin, everything that was good about her. Then, meeting on the Enterprise again.

And with the Enterprise came Data. Data standing in the woods in the holodeck, trying to whistle. Data, who wasn't human. Data, who let the alien in.

A conspiracy took root in Riker's mind. Was it possible that Noonian Soong had programmed Data to retrieve a Xenomorph, as Weyland-Yutani had done to theirs? Or did Soong work for the Company? Where had Weyland-Yutani gone in all those decades? A big corporation like theirs just didn't disappear overnight. Money was no object anymore, but the influence and their materials would have stayed somewhere. He wondered if it hadn't become larger…changed its name…

* * *

Data handed Geordi a small wrench and said, "Screw that."

Geordi turned his head to him, holding the gun-like instrument in his hands. "Did you just mildly swear?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"I had intended for you to place the wrench on that bolt and turn it to the left at a thirty-five degree angle."

"Oh," Geordi said, and continued with the project lying on the table.

Soon, Worf's large security team arrived.

"What kind of primitive technology is this?" Worf sneered.

"If something happens to the phasers, you'll have these," Geordi replied, still working. "Besides, it's Captain Picard's orders." For testing purposes, he pointed the weapon in the air and fired off a shot of orange flames. Then he attached a motion-and-heat detector to it. "Is everyone else ready?" He looked around the room at his fellow engineers. Nine other flamethrowers with detectors had been assembled. "You can have this one," Geordi said to Worf, handing it to him.

Worf slung it around his shoulders and spoke to his men, splitting them into ten groups, one for each of the ventilation entrances and flamethrowers that had managed to get assembled in the short amount of time. Geordi directed Worf's group to one of the entrances and they ascended the ladder. Geordi then went and sat down at a console that had a map of all the vents. "Alright Worf, I'm taking down the first shield," he said through the Engineering intercom. After he did so, the ten teams entered their respective vents. Various glowing red dots appeared on the blueprint.

Geordi raised the shields again after they were through. He wasn't too concerned about his fellows because they were trained to deal with a lot of situations, including loose species. Despite the fast maturation of a Xenomorph, Geordi didn't think it would grow that fast in just an hour.

While Worf crawled through the space, he also wondered how large the alien had grown. He wasn't afraid of any being, no matter how big they were or how many teeth they had. He was a Klingon, a warrior, and despite the ferocity that Captain Picard had described, he wouldn't let the past deaths determine the future of their lives.

Meanwhile, the Xenomorph was in the process of shedding its beige skin. It rubbed its torso against the hull to slip it off, first revealing its black head and then the rest of its dark body. When it got down to the tail, the alien shook it off with much fervor and almost purred with satisfaction. With that completed, it moved to a different part of the vents, noticed the shield, and touched it, hissing angrily when the contact sent pain up its arm.

It tore into the wall with its inner jaw and began eating some wiring, mouth going in and out with hunks of metal. Though the Xenomorph preferred flesh, the wiring would have to do. Its body had a way of converting almost anything into useful material or energy. The alien wasn't fully grown yet, and managed to squeeze in where it had eaten the wiring in order to wait for its prey. As it sat, it gained more height and weight as it digested the inorganic food.

As a security team approached, the Xenomorph could read their emotions, even though it couldn't see them yet. There were emotions that the alien didn't understand; the beings hunting it were sentient and had a sense of morality.

"Yuck!" somebody exclaimed. "It's slimy!"

"You didn't have to touch that."

"I was curious."

Several moments later, one of the men said, "I can see a hole in the wall up there."

"It's hard to point your phaser in here," another complained.

"Shut up and do your job."

When they were in range, the adolescent alien pounced. The motion detectors hadn't picked up the stealthy, unmoving Xenomorph. The heat detectors hadn't picked it up, either, because the alien was jumbled in with the wiring, which conducted electricity, which can make things very warm.

Wild screams erupted from the vents and several dots on Geordi's monitor disappeared. "Team Seven, what's happening?!"

In response, there was a big splatter.

Geordi began sweating. He swallowed. At least the other teams couldn't hear what had happened; the intercom was a one-way line of communication. "It's in Section 26J!"

 _There are nine other teams_ , Geordi reminded himself. _And only four paths to the intersection._ Perhaps he had misjudged the creature. They had it outnumbered, though. For once, he wondered if the phrase "safety in numbers" was less about survival than it was about death.

The Xenomorph quickly sucked some blood out of a victim and then crawled back in with the wires, munching furiously, enjoying a metallic taste from both the iron and blood. Its strong jaws cut through so much that Geordi's map went out, and so did the shields in the vents. "No," Geordi whispered. The mission was tumbling down. He wiped his forehead. "Everybody, pull out!"

The intercom was dead.

Geordi couldn't use his communicator because there would be too much interference due to the surrounding equipment. He jumped out of his seat and ran to the nearest ladder and climbed it while the other engineers evacuated the area. Geordi bellowed "RETREAT!" into the vents, but with no acknowledgment. He repeated the word until he lost his voice. He didn't want his comrades to die or suffer because the technology, 200 years ahead of what Ripley had, was unable to stand against a primordial beast.

The Xenomorph could feel everyone's fear. The security teams, engineers, even Geordi. Fear was a simple emotion that it could understand, for everything that encountered the Xenomorph felt fear. There was only one signature in the vents, however, that was aggressive, like itself. The alien doubted that would last for long. It had noticed the absence of shields and darted off, hating the lighted atmosphere.

One guy fired the flames every so often just as a precaution, and it happened to be the right time. The Xenomorph had to back out of the flamethrower's range.

"There it is!" a woman yelled, and phasers hit it. Alas, it was not stunned, but screed and cried out every time it received a beam. They changed the setting to kill, but with the same results.

"Why isn't it working?!" someone cried.

"Its skin is too thick or something!" the guy shouted, sending more flames toward the creature. "Go back!"

They had a little trouble turning around in the vents. Plus, the flame-throwing guy had to remain facing forward so he could fire at it. The procession went somewhat slowly until the Xenomorph lost its patience and disappeared into another tunnel.

It went around the block fast and killed the original last person of the team and worked its way up, breaking through skulls using its second mouth and impaling people with its tail. It was a bloodbath. The vents were painted red, with little white showing.

The other teams found out that the phasers couldn't stun and also tried the kill setting. They couldn't concentrate the beams on it long enough to have a damaging effect. The phaser was best adapted for humanoid life forms, despite the Xenomorph having burst from a half-Betazoid half-human. Plus, it had protective armor.

Worf's team encountered the dripping walls and headed back. When they heard the steady beat of the warp core, they felt some relief. All five made it out safely, but were shocked to see Geordi panting and gesticulating with his hands. "Run…no shields…" he croaked.

After he spoke, one crew member was pierced right through the stomach with the Xenomorph's sharp tail and hurled against the warp core, falling down several decks. It raised itself on its hind legs while a copious amount of human blood dripped on the floor. Geordi grabbed the three fear-paralyzed security officers and dragged them out of the room, almost freezing up himself.

Worf snarled at the creature, who snarled back. The Xenomorph lashed its tail back and forth, flicking off blood onto the surrounding walls and floor. Worf threw his phaser at the alien, knowing it only served as a distraction, and pulled the flamethrower on it. He was careful not to let the fire touch the warp engines as he pushed the Xenomorph against the wall. It hissed.

The flamethrower eventually hissed, too. It was out of gas.

Worf huffed with exasperation and threw it. He unsheathed a dagger from under his baldric and decided to engage in hand-to-hand combat. His warrior's heart thumped in his chest as a waterfall might pound into rock, blood was hot with battle. The juvenile alien was a few inches shorter than he was, but Worf knew better than to think he had the upper hand. He and the hunter circled each other until the moment came to clash.

Worf's jab was blocked by the Xenomorph's tail. It swatted at him, and he dodged. As the alien launched itself at him, Worf tried plunging the dagger in its chest. Neither were successful, and the creature had him on the ground and was extending its second mouth in and out. Worf fought to keep the Xenomorph away by keeping his hands on its throat. His last-ditch attempt would be to bite it with his own sharp teeth.

The alien sensed what Worf was about to do and brought its tail around for the final strike. The Klingon had fought valiantly. His blood tasted interesting, too.

The Xenomorph's unique power would surely be useful.


	4. Red

A security officer, supporting Geordi on his shoulders, notified Captain Picard of the dire situation. "Then the time has come to evacuate," Picard said without hesitation, and without hope. His most fearless and perhaps strongest officer had been killed by the enemy. "Computer, go to red alert immediately and initiate evacuation procedures."

The computer began its usual spiel.

Picard knew where he needed to go to initiate the self-destruction of the Enterprise, but he was afraid of what—and who—he'd find there. He supposed that the Xenomorph would be gone by the time he reached the appointed place, though. "Riker and I need to get to the Main Engineering Room in order to initiate the destruct sequence."

Geordi shook his head viciously, grabbing onto Picard's shoulders and sputtering. The captain simply lifted his hand and calmly brushed away droplets of blood clinging to Geordi's visor. Wesley stared wide-eyed at them. Picard looked over his shoulder at him. "Wesley, put out a distress signal for us and a warning beacon for the planet. No, belay the last part. We're going to attack the planet."

"Yes, sir," he said, tapping various buttons on the console.

Picard tapped his communicator. "Riker, where are you?"

No answer.

"Riker, acknowledge."

Nothing.

"Where's Data?"

"I'm right here, sir," Data said from the left helm.

Picard squeezed his eyes shut. A thousand horrible images raced through his mind. He couldn't think properly. If he only could have remembered _Game Over, Man_ sooner, he might have prevented all this, told Beverly to operate immediately, do this, do that. Hindsight was 20/20, but his guilt was at a much higher ratio. Picard also hated to abandon his ship. It had been launched, what, almost four years ago? He had many good memories with his officers and good encounters with other beings, feeling pride as he sat in his chair and setting the warp speed.

"Data, arm the photon torpedoes."

"Yes, sir." Data left the helm and took the position behind and above Picard's seat, readying the weapons systems.

This was a direct violation of Starfleet procedures, but how can one be diplomatic with a murderous organism like the Xenomorph? Picard would gladly lose his rank and position in order to save hundreds, thousands, even millions or billions of lives. It was the only way.

"Ready, sir."

"Fire at the planet. And keep firing until I say stop."

Many balls of energy hit the black, rugged surface. Picard didn't relent until the planet looked like a heavily-pitted golf ball.

* * *

With shaking hands, Dr. Beverly Crusher picked up a white blanket and laid it over Deanna's corpse; they hadn't had the time to do proper procedure for burial and such. Then the red alert started up. The doctor made sure that all of her personnel were evacuated before leaving herself, despite her own strong fear caused by the earlier events. She took a last glance around Sickbay and was about to head out the door when the Xenomorph dropped from the ceiling.

She screamed and fell backward onto her bottom. The alien was on all fours, its tail lashing back and forth. It revealed its glistening silvery teeth and drooled on the carpet. The Xenomorph felt the same shock of terror emanating from the doctor and remembered her at its birth. It looked over to the covered body and recognized it as the host.

Through the thick heaviness of dread, Dr. Crusher suddenly thought about her communicator. Before she managed to get to it, the alien struck her in the heart with its second mouth, knowing what she was about to do without having witnessed the functions of a communicator. The life fled from the doctor and all motion ceased to be. Her face remained frozen with terror.

* * *

Many escape pods and shuttles released from the Enterprise. Picard wondered if the Xenomorph would take one. Before he could worry about that, he said, "Computer, locate Commander Riker."

"Commander Riker is in Ten Forward."

"Data, Geordi, Wesley, accompany me to Ten Forward," Picard beckoned. They all filed into the elevator, looking at the empty Bridge. It would be their last time seeing it. The doors closed and they waited with apprehension in the tight space.

"Commander!" Wesley exclaimed when they arrived, aghast that Riker was slumped over the bar, but not drinking. He had changed into civilian clothes—a gray shirt and blue jeans. He had discarded his communicator somewhere in his quarters and hadn't bothered to stay updated on the current situation. Plus, this had all happened in the span of several hours, and nobody had mentioned anything to him. Although he noticed the different lights crossing the ship in warning, he didn't care. He felt apathetic because of everything that occurred since that morning.

Guinan tended bar, wearing a large orange saucer hat that day.

"What are you still doing here?" Picard demanded.

"I could neither leave him alone nor carry him," the lady replied smoothly.

Riker buried his face in his arms.

"Pull yourself together, Will!" Picard marched over to his subordinate. "We must get to the Engine Room now so we can destroy the Enterprise, and the alien along with it."

Riker didn't respond, trapped in his own darkened mind.

"We don't have time for this." Picard seized his first officer by the top of his head and commanded, "You are going to get up, and that's an order, Number One!" His strong-willed eyes bore into Riker's. All officers were instructed on the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, but Picard didn't have time for kind, subtle tactics.

Riker cleared his throat, successful in breaking through the barrier of his grief and horror. Picard released the man's hair. Riker subsequently straightened his shirt and shook himself. "Yes, sir," he said in a voice quieter than his usual tone.

"Wesley, escort Guinan to a Transporter Room," Picard instructed. Those who were too far away from the escape pods or who were physically unable to close the distance were being beamed from the Transporter Rooms.

"Yes, sir." Wesley quickly walked over to Guinan, who handed him a pointed glass fixture that resembled an icicle. It was from one of the more artistic glasses in Ten Forward that had found a second use.

"We might need it," she said, and gave the other four their own icicles.

Wesley gulped, and they took a separate elevator from the main group, who continued their descent into the belly of the ship.

* * *

The Xenomorph wasn't pleased when groups of people suddenly left its own "thought radar," but that made it easier to identify isolated groups or a single person still on the ship. It sensed masses of people congregating in one place and proceeded to Deck 6, snuffing out the life in Transporter Rooms 1 and 2.

There was no line when Wesley and Guinan arrived in Room 3. They stood up on the platform.

"I think you're the last ones," O'Brien said, noting that only the three of them were left. He had already done dozens of other groups of people and was anxious to get away. "I'm just going to program a delay so that I can go with you." He tapped numerous different buttons and began the short walk to them.

The doors to the Transporter Room opened. Three heads snapped to the new organism.

The Xenomorph tackled O'Brien. Wesley's gut reaction propelled him forward, driving the glass icicle into the alien's shoulder. Acid spurted out and Wesley tipped backward, clutching his face in agony. The Xenomorph screamed and angrily stabbed Wesley with its tail, flinging him into the hallway. It finished off O'Brien with sharp claws, slashing the officer's neck. Warm blood from his aorta gushed out in a graceful arc.

At the moment the alien turned its blood-covered face to Guinan, she dematerialized from the room. The alien roared with ferocious disappointment. However, the Xenomorph felt a dull pulse of emotion coming from the lower decks. It wanted to know why those humans weren't leaving like the others. Now that there was no one else it could ambush, the alien took the regular hallways instead of the vents. The halls were still lighted, but flashed red. Everything was always red after the Xenomorph came through.


	5. Escape

Geordi didn't want to return to the scene of the massacre in Engineering. He was afraid of what-and who-he would find there. So, he switched his visor to thermal mode, where he would only be able to see the temperatures, but not so much of the carnage. Plus, he would see when the Xenomorph was coming because his visor was much more powerful than a run-of-the-mill heat detector.

The elevator door opened and hot air came breezing into the faces of Picard, Riker, Data, and Geordi.

"See anything, Geordi?" Riker mumbled.

"No, sir," he wheezed, clutching his icicle tightly. He was almost on the verge of hyperventilating.

Geordi kept moving his line of sight all over the place as the four advanced into the room and to the main console, which thankfully didn't have the warp core in its sights. Yet, they still saw a pool of dark pink Klingon blood from their vantage point. Geordi only saw blue coldness and tried to swallow the fact that he was the last one to see Worf alive.

Picard and Riker stood across from each other and placed one hand on the console, which was coated in some slime. Picard unceremoniously used his sleeve to wipe the slime away. He shook his arm and only accomplished getting some of it off on the floor. Then, he placed his hand on the console again while Riker stood with a glazed-over expression, uncaring about the sticky substance.

"Recognized Picard, Jean-Luc," the computer said. They breathed sighs of relief, thankful that the slime hadn't interfered. "Recognized Riker, William T."

"Initiate auto-destruct sequence," Picard said.

"Does Riker, William T., concur?"

"I do," he replied without vigor. "Initiate auto-destruct sequence."

"Desired time interval?"

"Ten minutes."

"Auto-destruct sequence initiated." The computer screen displayed the red message of doom and the countdown clock.

Riker let out a breath. "Alright, let's get the hell out of here!"

"Wait, Number One," Picard said in a determined manner. "Computer, is there anyone else on the ship beside us four?"

"There is only one unidentified organism on Deck 35."

"It is above us!" Data noted anxiously.

Picard continued, "Computer, eject all escape pods. And release all shuttles except for one in the main shuttle bay."

"Acknowledged."

With that completed, they quickly entered the elevator once more. They heard a screech. The Xenomorph promptly swung around the corner—running on the ceiling. The door closed and the elevator began ascending, but the doors were pried open by two strong, black hands. The crew backed against the wall as the Xenomorph stuck its eyeless face in the elevator.

"Ascent blocked," the computer said. "Nine minutes to auto-destruct."

Data brought his leg up and kicked the Xenomorph in the face. It fell backward, off of the ceiling, and the elevator continued upward. It didn't deter the alien, who latched onto the bottom of the elevator and rode with them for a little bit.

The Xenomorph searched their frantic minds, finding that they intended to kill it by destroying the entire ship. It also found that a lone shuttle would carry them safely away from the explosion. This angered the alien more, so it dug its legs and tail into the sides of the elevator shaft while hanging onto the bottom of the elevator, preventing it from moving.

The elevator shook and screeched to a stop.

"Computer, where are we?" Riker demanded, trying to regain his balance from the sudden lurch.

"You are on Deck 8."

"Four decks left," Picard said. "Get out!" He pressed an emergency button and the four darted out.

It took the Xenomorph several seconds to push the elevator out of its way and follow them. Knowing the Xenomorph was faster, Data lingered behind. "I've got it, Captain," he announced.

"Take this!" Picard yelled, throwing his icicle to him, and the three continued across the deck. Data shoved both icicles into his pockets, where they protruded out like twin guns.

The Xenomorph didn't detect any emotion coming from the android in front of it. Yet, it knew that Data had thoughts. It smelt that Data was only human on the outside, and that's why he had been able to kick it out of the elevator. The alien hissed softly, trying to judge what Data would do; he was unreadable. The Xenomorph didn't have time to play around, and tried to throw Data aside with its tail. However, Data grabbed it, spun around, and used the momentum against the alien, tossing it into an officers' quarters. The Xenomorph broke through the door, a vase, and a bed, thrashing under the remnants.

It was actually Data's quarters. Spot meowed with despair in the corner. "Run, Spot," Data said, even though Spot never understood what her owner was saying. Data rushed over and grabbed his cat by the scruff of the neck. Then, he chucked Spot into the hallway. With her tail fluffed up, Spot sprinted down the corridor in the direction that the others had gone.

The Xenomorph got back on its feet and stood on two legs. Data grabbed an icicle from his pocket and began calculating angles, speed, and circular movement. He twirled the weapon in his hand before launching it at the chest of the intended target. The Xenomorph brought its tail up, trying to deflect it, but the icicle pierced through the flesh and stuck in the tail. Drops of acid hit the wall and ceiling, smoking holes forming instantaneously.

With record speed, Data threw his other icicle at the alien's foot, stabbing it in the ankle. He bolted before he could see the complete results of his actions and before more acid sprayed around. He heard the alien screaming in pain.

On his way to the elevator, Data grabbed Spot again, relieved that she was safe. There was no interference on their ride from the Xenomorph, who was limping from the hole in its ankle.

Meanwhile, Picard, Riker, and Geordi had reached the main shuttle bay and were preparing the craft for takeoff.

"Four minutes until auto-destruct."

Their hearts were beating rapidly. It had only been six minutes, but it felt like an eternity!

Riker pressed a few more buttons. "It's ready, Captain."

"Acknowledged," Picard responded from the pilot's seat. He was about to launch, but saw Data entering the hold, carrying an unhappy orange bundle.

Geordi opened the back door for Data, who slid into the shuttle baseball-style. Spot scratched Data and ran under one of the chairs. As soon as the door closed again, Picard hit the blinking green button to launch. Before the shuttle fully zoomed away, he glimpsed the Xenomorph entering the hangar and angrily screeching. Picard was glad that they were faster than it; the shuttle didn't have an airlock to blow out the alien.

When the four survivors could see the entire Enterprise, they sighed heavily and let out some tension that had built in their bodies. Geordi sat down, removed his visor, and rubbed his eyes.

A little screen on the shuttle showed how much time the Enterprise-D had left to exist. _Twenty, nineteen…_

"Anything to say to her, Captain?" Riker stood next to Picard.

The captain gazed fondly at his ship. "She deserved a better end, but I am glad that we stopped that thing."

 _Five, four, three, two, one. Zero._

The Enterprise finally detonated, sending out a massive shockwave that shook the spacecraft and disturbed the planet. The ship lit up in bright shades of yellow and orange, hot debris flying past. Picard remained in his seat, staring at the stars and the ugly rock that used to be a planet.

"Are there more places with Xenomorphs out there?" Riker asked, hoping that Picard knew the answer to be negative.

"It cannot be known as of now," Picard sadly replied. He wouldn't even know who made it out alive until they were rescued and reunited somewhere in Federation territory. Yet, he still grieved for Deanna, Worf, and the loss of dozens of others. He was also loathe to think of the inquest that Starfleet would surely have.

Riker stretched out on the floor and tried to get his breathing even. He needed to recover. He wished that Picard would have said something to put him at ease. Riker's own dreams of becoming a captain were over, as he planned on resigning as soon as possible. He wanted the solid foundation of ground below his feet again.

"Data…" Picard started.

"Yes, Captain?"

"Why did you have to rescue this cat?"

Data bent down to get a look at Spot, who was curled under Picard's chair. "She is my friend," he replied simply.

Geordi scoffed. He was the twitchiest of all of them. As an engineer, he worked with his hands a lot, so he wrung his hands and occasionally bit his nails. He wondered what he would do now that the crisis was over, but he knew he'd be trapped in his own crisis for a longer time. He knew he'd eventually get therapy and return to his usual self. He hoped his friends would do the same.

Data was the composed one. Although, he ran through what he'd seen several times before asking himself if he was simply analyzing the Xenomorph's behavior or if he found the events distressing. He felt that he was on the verge of discovering emotion, but wished the circumstances were different. As the most stable, he vowed to be there for his friends in order to help them get better.

The four survivors floated near other jettisoned shuttles and escape pods. A Federation ship arrived in a few hours. By then, Riker and Geordi had fallen asleep out of exhaustion, and they occasionally spasmed with nightmares. Picard wondered if the real nightmare was over, if it would last in their dreams until they died, or if this was just the new beginning of an old story.

Picard opened the communication lines. "This is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the _USS Enterprise_ …"

 **The End**


End file.
